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NBA Finals: The Memphians who coached Marc Gasol at Lausanne watched him win a title together

Thousands in Toronto cheered on the Raptors, who won their first NBA championship on Thursday night. The Raptors defeated the two-time defending champion Golden State Warriors 114-110 on Thursday in Oakland, in Game 6 of the NBA Finals. (June 14)
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Donna Van Hoozer pulled out the bottle of champagne on ice about 15 minutes before tipoff Thursday night and Jason Peters winced a little bit.

“I’m nervous,” he said. “I’m too superstitious for that.”

We were in the former Lausanne boys’ basketball coach’s East Memphis backyard, on the brick patio seated in outdoor folding chairs, getting set to watch Game 6 of the NBA Finals on a 110-inch screen.

There were two coolers full of beer and wine, four pizzas inside the house, an Apple laptop, an Epson projector and a Bose speaker. There were two of his former Lausanne assistant coaches, older brother Jon Peters and longtime friend Jon Van Hoozer, their wives and a couple more friends. There were stories about the two years Marc Gasol spent playing for them at Lausanne.

And most of all, there was hope.

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Jason Peters, left, the high school coach of Marc Gasol at Lausanne, watches with friends at the home as Gasol wins an NBA Championship with the Toronto Raptors on Thursday, June 13, 2019.(Photo: Joe Rondone/The Commercial Appeal)

That this would be the night they witnessed the 7-foot-1 Spaniard who came to Memphis 18 years ago — and became an indelible part of the city — finally win a championship. It’s why Jason Peters has been hosting these get-togethers throughout the NBA Finals, breaking out the “Grit and Grind” projection screen he once used for Grizzlies playoff games to watch the Toronto Raptors.

Gasol 'should have been the godfather'

It was the first half and everybody was sharing their own Gasol story.

Like the time Gasol ignited a snowball fight outside of a Wendy’s in Carbondale, Illinois. Or the many times Lausanne had to call timeout to safety pin Gasol’s jersey to his shorts because he was so big and it was so hard to keep his jersey tucked in.

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Jason Peters, high school coach of Marc Gasol at Lausanne, cheers with friends, including fellow coach Jon Van Hoozer, left, at his home as they watch Gasol win an NBA Championship with the Toronto Raptors on Thursday, June 13, 2019.(Photo: Joe Rondone/The Commercial Appeal)

But it was an anecdote from Donna Van Hoozer that probably best explains why Memphis adopted Gasol as one of its own, and why so many around the city rejoiced with him Thursday night.

Donna Van Hoozer had given birth to a son very prematurely when Gasol was at Lausanne. She had to remain in the hospital for 60 days. On one of those days, the entire Gasol family visited.

After leaving the hospital, she began accompanying Lausanne on its road trips to tournaments and games. When the team would go to a restaurant, Gasol would ask to hold her son.

“He would take my 4-pound baby in his big, giant hands, and take him to the other end of the table so I could eat," she said. "He should have been the godfather.”

So while Jason Peters hasn’t spoken to Gasol in a couple years, and Jon Van Hoozer last saw him around Christmas, they still feel connected to him. Just like much of Memphis still feels connected to him, four months after the Grizzlies traded Gasol to the Raptors.

When he appeared on the screen Thursday night, the player they saw felt familiar. Sort of.

“He’s the exact same, only about 100 pounds less,” Jason Peters said, and then he began to re-hash how a future NBA All-Star ended up playing for his tiny private school team.

Gasol moved to Memphis with his family ahead of his junior year of high school, once the Grizzlies chose Pau in the first round of the 2001 NBA draft. Marc initially enrolled at White Station High School before realizing it was too big compared to the smaller environments he came from in Barcelona.

He ended up at Lausanne instead.

“Jason called me up and said, ‘You’re not going to believe who’s at my door,’" Jon Van Hoozer said. “Marc shows up at Jason’s door one day and blocks out the sun.”

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Jason Peters shares a kiss with his wife Emily while Donna Van Hoozer celebrates in the background as Marc Gasol wins an NBA Championship with the Toronto Raptors on Thursday, June 13, 2019. The group watched the game at the home of Peters, who has known Gasol since he was a teenager when he coached him on the basketball team at Lausanne.(Photo: Joe Rondone/The Commercial Appeal)

From the first scrimmage, the Lausanne staff knew this “chunky” 6-foot-10 younger brother was different. He could hit 3-pointers and fire off no-look passes when neither of those skills were normal for a center. But he cared more about winning than his statistics.

Yes, he devoured two Big Macs in a sitting and tipped the scales at well over 300 pounds back then. But he nonetheless became the unselfish star of a roster that featured teammates from Serbia, Germany, Montenegro and Frayser.

“When Marc got to Lausanne, he knew very limited English,” Peters said. “But he spoke basketball. He was so big and tall that it was mesmerizing to people."

Jonnie West, the son of former Grizzlies executive and NBA legend Jerry West, joined the team when Gasol was a senior. Peters said Jerry West would sometimes help out at practice and Shane Battier often showed up to Lausanne games. But they never did win a state championship, falling in the state finals that year.

In these NBA Finals, however, Gasol started every game for the Raptors while Jonnie West served as a front office executive for Golden State.

'You coached an NBA champion'

By the second quarter, Jon Van Hoozer had determined that if Gasol just scored 10 points Thursday night, “we,” as in the Raptors, would win.

After halftime, once Jason Peters sang The Clash's "Should I Stay or Should I Go?" with his wife, Emily, on lead guitar during an impromptu concert, they all gasped together when Golden State's Klay Thompson left the game with a knee injury.

But now it was the start of the fourth quarter and Gasol had just one point and five field goal attempts.

Golden State, meanwhile, had the lead, and even some of Gasol's most loyal supporters sounded a lot like his harshest critics.

“We all get (ticked) off because Marc won’t shoot,” Jon Peters said.

With 5:16 to go, Gasol got the ball at the top of the key and passed on another decent look.

“He knows he’s off,” Van Hoozer observed.

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Jason Peters and his wife Emily play song during halftime of the NBA Finals game between the Golden State Warriors and Toronto Raptors at their home on Thursday, June 13, 2019. Peters, the high school coach of Marc Gasol at Lausanne, held the watch party as Gasol won his first NBA Championship with the Toronto Raptors.(Photo: Joe Rondone/The Commercial Appeal)

About a minute later, Gasol headed to the free throw line and tied the score at 101. On the next possession, he successfully contested a 3-pointer. But seconds after that, Toronto removed him from the game in favor of Serge Ibaka.

He finished with three points, nine rebounds and four assists.

Ibaka quickly scored on a crucial putback and everyone erupted in unison for the first time. They wanted what’s best for the Raptors because that's what's best for Gasol.

Donna Van Hoozer pours a round of champagne as Marc Gasol wins an NBA Championship with the Toronto Raptors on Thursday, June 13, 2019. The group watched the game at the home of Jason Peters who has known Gasol since he was a teenager when he coached him on the basketball team at Lausanne.(Photo: Joe Rondone/The Commercial Appeal)

The game wasn't officially over, but the champagne bottle had already come out of the cooler again. Donna Van Hoozer popped the cork with 0.9 seconds still on the clock.

As Kawhi Leonard’s last free throws went in, and Toronto secured its 114-110 win and first NBA title, Gasol raised his arms in triumph from the sideline. The backyard broke out in cheers and hugs once again.

“I want to get a visual of him,” Jason Peters said, and then Gasol re-appeared on the projector screen embracing his teammates. "There he is."

“You coached an NBA champion,” Jon Van Hoozer told his friend.

“I can’t believe it. I’m so proud. Couldn’t happen to a better guy,” Peters said, digesting the scene. "It’s a great ending. He gets to call his brother and say, 'I got one.' Marc got himself a ring.”

Donna Van Hoozer poured the champagne and this group of Memphians who knew Gasol long before he was a world champion toasted him with their full glasses and posed together for a photo.

Jon Van Hoozer sent the picture, along with a text message, to Gasol’s cell phone.

“Congrats from the gang back home,” it read.

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You can reach Commercial Appeal columnist Mark Giannotto via email at mgiannotto@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter: @mgiannotto